


Blizzard

by Crina_thescaredycat_hermit



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Awkward Flirting, Bad Weather, Car Accidents, Character Turned Into a Ghost, F/F, F/M, How Do I Tag, Minor Injuries, POV Multiple, Past Character Death, Past Relationship(s), Survival Training, abandoned house, ok might be very ridiculous please bear with me, slightly ridiculous, whiny character everyone wants to punch
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-11
Updated: 2018-03-11
Packaged: 2019-03-16 22:09:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13645428
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crina_thescaredycat_hermit/pseuds/Crina_thescaredycat_hermit
Summary: A story in which several high school friends set off to scout out a college deep in the mountains. Several wrong turns and a crash leave them stranded deeper in the mountains than they intended, in middle of a heavy storm. They decide their best bet for survival is to head up to the shadow on the hill. Drama ensues. Relationships past and present make themselves known, and the group tries to work together until they can get help.It has been nearly a century since Mrs. Sardonyx Welch, widow of the great Welch estate, has had contact with semi-intelligent life, and she can't decide whether to be furious at the sloppy group of unruly adolescence that showed up at her doorstep, or to allow herself to be entertained by their petty arguments. In either case, she plans to spook them out as quickly as possible.





	1. Men Don't Need Directions

**Author's Note:**

> First fic for AO3! This is meant to be more humorous and shippy than serious at first, but several very important topics will be discussed later on. I estimate this may run in the neighborhood of 50 or more chapters.
> 
> ******I would never wish the misfortune of dating Kevin on anyone, but because of the real person that inspired his role in the story, I needed someone childish and full of it. I apologize for scarring Pearl beyond recovery.
> 
> Rose will be mentioned as part of the past, but will not be in this otherwise.
> 
> Oh, and Sardonyx is nuts. She will appear more after chapter 5, but I wanted to use the first few chapters to set the scene and introduce characters.
> 
>  
> 
> This is my first attempt at a long fic in almost two years, harsh criticism will help whip me back into shape (after losing several hours of sleep, and half my hair. Jk)  
> If you are willing to review, I would be eternally grateful and send you virtual nachos or cake afterwards. Or both! 
> 
>  
> 
> Oh, they are also all going into college. There will be some cursing and sexual tension.
> 
> There is a car crash.
> 
> Please pardon any spelling mistakes. I wrote this out on a tablet with questionable autocorrect and a slightly misaligned screen...

A sigh drifted through the mansion like a breeze. The movement caused a stir in the heavy curtains and the dust layered thick on the carpets. Invisible fingers traced the edge of the oak mantle, leaving no marks behind.

Mrs. Sardonyx Welch, widow of the great Welch Estate of Colorado, settled weightlessly upon moth-eaten cushions lining the South-facing bay window in the parlor. She smiled wistfully, staring at the window in front of her as though she could actually seen beyond the dirt and grime on the glass. Phantom melodies drifted to her ears from the grand piano in the corner behind her, long unused even in the mansion's glory days for the distance between it and her fashionable friends from New York.

Sardonyx tilted her head and stuck it through the window to get a good look at what had once been her expansive vineyards. The supports and the vines had long since given way to the harsh schedule of !other Nature. In the snow, however slight, it seemed as though the rows still existed, as if the vineyard were just resting through the unexpected snowstorms that occasionally drifted down from the mountains.

Or, perhaps Sardonyx had simply gone mad.

A laugh, full and shrill, echoed through the parlor as Sardonyx pulled her head back in. She mad a fuss of dusting off the light red plumage on her black mourning hat. She drew herself to her full imposing height and surveyed the parlor. Petrified wallpaper crackled away from the walls above heavy redwood paneling. Her piano sorely needed a polishing. She could see the wear in the carpet from her days as a living young woman, pacing as she waited for Alfred to bring her a new trinket or news from some faraway place in his travels. Of course, his work barely brought him further than the Danube in Europe, but Sardonyx paced all the same.

A strange, muffled crunch brought beard onyx from her musings. She straightened her hat and jacket before rising through several floors to land on the widow's watch. The weather of the area never quite suited her, though it didn't matter postmortem. With a look of disgust, she pulled the lapels of her black jacker closer over her red blouse, taking care to hover just above the horrible snow.

Pale brown eyes peered through the snow, trailing along the familiar fence in the distance. They stopped at the gate.

It seemed some sort of.... Monstrosity... Had crashed into her beautiful pillars and gate.

Sardonyx flushed with rage as she could barely make out the smaller, humanoid form that climbed across the monstrosity's back. She puffed out her chest.

"OPAL!!!!!" She screamed over her shoulder. Sardonyx wilted a moment later and settled her forehead on her palm. Opal hadn't worked for the Welch's for nearly one hundred years. She was, perhaps, the last living soul to have laid eyes on the place, as per Sardonyx's will.

 

............

 

"Would you slow down?" Garnet grumbled, readjusting her sunglasses yet again as the van lurched around another sharp turn. She braced one hand against the ceiling of the van as her other hand held her phone in a vice-like grip. She heard a snicker from the front seat as she checked her phone screen. Still no bars.

"Do you want to get there on time or not?" Kevin asked from the driver's seat, waving his hand about before setting it on Pearl's shoulder in the passenger seat. Garnet grit her teeth as the pale woman giggled.

"I'd rather get there alive." She averted her eyes from the flirtatious couple in front, whispering sweet nothings back and forth, in favor of her phone screen. Shadows from the trees around them flitted across the screen. With the forest as thick as it was, and their altitude declining, she doubted they would get a signal anytime soon.

"I think we should turn back." Kevin glared back at Garnet through the rear view mirror.

"Turning back is for the weak!" Amethyst exclaimed unhelpfully from the other middle row seat. She had one hand raised in a dramatic gesture. Two more heads popped up over the seat backs to give their opinion from the third row.

Maybe Garnet is right..." Steven, the shortest of the lot, began.

"If we have no service, I can't back up my games. I just got ten levels in since-" Jenny's tirade was cut off.

"Relax!" Kevin called out over the other's voices. "I would never get a group of such lovely ladies lost in a storm like this!" He said, adding as an afterthought. "Oh, or Garnet and Steven, I suppose."

"Ooh, put some ice on that, G!" Amethyst threw a friendly punch Garnet's way. The taller swatted her hand away and rolled her eyes behind her glasses, and focused on her phone once again. Even her locating service, which sometimes worked out of range of her own service towers wasn't working.

"I think we missed a turn or three." She insisted, leaning over the console to be heard over the chatter in the back of the van.

"Relax Garnet, I know where I'm going." Kevin laughed, taking his hand from Pearl's shoulder to run it through his hair. Garnet huffed through her nose as Pearl let out an obnoxiously forced laugh.

Garnet and Kevin locked eyes through the rear view mirror once again.

"Fine," Garnet said, leaning back in her seat and powering down her phone. "You know where to go from here."

"Wha-!?" Kevin's face turned green for a moment before he regained his composure. He smirk and chuckled. "Yeah, I've been trying to tell you I got this under control."

Garnet groaned and turned away from the sight of Pearl awarding her airhead boyfriend with a little shoulder massage. She opted to watch the trees pass by too fast for her liking and glance at Amethyst, unbuckled, from time to time. She was still turned around to talk to Steven and Jenny. Garnet pulled off her glasses and rested her head against the glass to her left. The constant jerking of the van, which Garnet was sure Steven's dad would protest to, became the least of her worries. 

Garnet woke to the sudden, shrill call of Pearl's voice.

"KEVIN! LOOK OUT!"

 

.....................

The next few moments- or minutes?- were a blur for Garnet. She could hear the other's voices all around, but she felt disoriented and kept her eyes closed a while longer.

"Where are we?" Fear laced Jenny's words.

"What happened?" Steven's tearful voice was as quiet as a whisper in her ringing ears.

"Holy fuck, Kevin, what did you do?!" Amethyst's shouts reminded her of her looming headache.

Garnet cracked one eye open to survey the scene around her, wondering.... Why was she so cold? And pale?

Her heart caught in her throat at the sight of her own blood across her left arm. She relaxed slightly at the realization that it was the snow, and not her skin itself, that made her look several shades lighter, peering to her right, the same couldn't be said of the short latina. She was clutching her ribs and checking over the seat at Pearl, who appears to be unconscious. Amethyst's face was almost as pale as the woman's in the front seat. Pearl's shoulders rose and fell in shallow, slow breaths.

Garnet looked to her left again, seeing the mess of twisted metal and glass that had once been a solid side of the vehicle. She grimaced.

"How is everyone doing?" She gasped, clutching her own burning ribs. She popped off her seatbelt and heard several other clicks.

"Not so hot," Jenny called out. "I think Steven broke his arm."

"Actually, I think I just sprained my elbow," he tried to wave it off. Garnet glanced back at him, unconvinced.

"We can make a splint, just to be sure." Jenny helped him scoot over to the middle, digging through her backpack for a spare shirt to wrap around the boy's bleeding arm. "I got lucky, I just got whiplash," she explained to Garnet. Garnet nodded and turned to Amethyst. She glanced back sheepishly, rubbing Pearl's shoulder as the thin woman woke up.

"Ummm, I learned my lesson about seatbelts?" After Garnet's continued scrutin, she shrugged. "My ribs and hip hurt, but I'm OK." Garnet nodded and leaned forward to check on Pearl. She chose to ignore Kevin hitting his head against the wheel repeatedly and muttering to himself. Pearl had a gash on the left side of her forehead, but seemed otherwise uninjured.

"Pearl?"

"Yeah, Garnet?" She groaned as she rubbed her head.

"What is one hundred and nineteen minus forty seven?"

"Is this really the right time to be doing math homework?" Garnet shoved Kevin's face back to quiet him. Pearl's eyebrows furrowed for a few seconds before she answered correctly.

"Seventy-two."

"Why does it have to be so cold in the mountains?" Kevin whined, wrapping his scarf tighter around his neck.

"It wouldn't be so cold in here if you weren't going so fast." Garnet looked out the hole in her side of the car. The trees had ended some time ago, but the snow obscured most of the vision anyways. Garnet sighed in relief at the gate and brick pillar they had hit. Another glance revealed a sizeable yard and a shadow barely visible on a nearby hill passed the fence.snow piled high across the entire area, dipping down along a line that leadup towards the shadow. A driveway? A sinking feeling built up in her fut at the sight of the uncleared path and the vines growing along the length of the fence, swallowing some sections whole.

"What do we do now?" Pearl's voice brought Garnet back to the present. She turned back to the group, brushing the snow off her arms and pants. Steven was holding his arm, tears trailing down his cheeks and bits of glass peppered across his whole body. Pearl's forehead was bleeding profusely. Jenny and Amethyst had begun to shiver with a mixture of shock and cold. Everyone looked to Garnet except Kevin, who was hunched over with his arms crossed.

Garnet's eyes drifted through the broken windshield to consider the shadow on the hill. Her hopes had died down that they would find someone there. Maybe there was a landline? The kind that didn't require separate power? She scoffed and shook her head. There had to be at least one part of it that didn't have a breeze. Maybe even a cellar with food? She nodded slowly. After all, she had skipped lunch in favor of not losing it as the car swerved about.

"We go to the house." Her voice was steady and low. "Bring as much as you can carry. We need all the food, water and warm clothes we have. It shouldn't be more than a mile."

Garnet leaned forward to point out the shadow, shuddering as Pearl's warm breath ghosted over her damp shirt.

"Can we make it that far?" Pearl's voice was small and timid.

"We have no choice. We will freeze out here." Garnet's tone left no room for argument. Kevin, however, was notorious for worming his way in.

"We can't drive up there!" He cranked the engine for emphasis. "What if we get frostbite walking up there? What if those people kick us out or don't have a pho-"

"Shut it, Kevin!" Jenny snapped. She finished wrapping Steven's arm and had begun to wipe his face clean. "You've gotten us far enough. What should we do, Garnet?" They exchanged glances over the seat and Garnet nodded gratefully. She hoisted herself out of the window to climb across the roof, rubbing her arms against the biting wind. She hopped down near the back doors, struggling to wrench them open. The entire body of the van had twisted from the impact, pinching the doors together. With a frustrated shout and a swift kick, one of the doors squealed open.

Garnet huffed at the sight of the mess before her. All their bags had been tossed around. 

"Where's a first aid kit?" She asked no one in particular. At least one of them had to have one. She shuddered to think what her mother would say if she knew Garnet hadn't packed one herself. She searched for the bag Pearl described, passing it forward before passing out the rest of the bags. She found her maroon suitcase and backpack at the bottom, trying to open the zipper with numb fingers. Two knitted sweaters and a red and blue knitted hat with a blue fuzzball were thrown on quickly. She pulled on her gloves next, noticing the swelling in her left wrist and arm. She ignored it in favor of sorting out her backpack and tossing it in the front with the others. Her suitcase followed soon after. She climbed back over the van.

In less than an hour, the group had bundled up, bandaged themselves, and repacked for the trip up. They hefted their bags on their backs, Garnet carrying Steven's as well, and wriggled their way through the gap in the twisted wrought iron gate. They were silent as they made the trek up the driveway, Kevin trailing at the very back of the group with a slight limp.


	2. The Shadow On The Hill

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group can't stay in a demolished van with limited supplies. Fortunately, one of the six decides to take lead in what could potentially be a fatal situation. The self-appointed leader decides their best chance for survival is to follow the path before them to, what they hope is, a suitable temporary shelter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to update this earlier, and I want to regularly update every other week. However, I am getting mixed messages. Que mini-rant on life.
> 
> My life changes week-to-week/bi-weekly. One week, I work 40-70 hours of babysitting for my brother, which is especially tiring considering he has twin boys.... The next week (and sporadically throughout babysitting week) I am a "maintenance-woman" of sorts for my parents' five-plex property. This past week has been maintenance week, but I've also had almost twenty hours errands mixed in.... And the Midwest had a mini-warm-front roll through, so I've been doing a lot of yard work.... And my younger sister bribes me with cigarettes to go to the gym with her when my older sister bails. (Oh, the irony of a health-freak indulging my unhealthy habits for company on the treadmills....) OH, as for the mixed messages part, despite all I do to help keep the complex running and babysitting, my dad wants me to get a part time job (so I can work three or four hours a day, when I can afford the time, just in time for the weather to favor major painting and foundation-rebuilding projects.....)
> 
>  
> 
> ANYWHO, the story? Oh, yes... Garnet and Pearl make a great team in comparison to Butthead and Amythest. Steven is adorkable as always :)

The walk to the house took longer than expected. As they came closer to it, Garnet's sneaking suspicion that it was abandoned was confirmed. It had been empty for so long, in fact, that a small forest of shrubbery and trees surrounded it, as if to hold up the hulking mansion. One tree even grew within the tower to their left, a bare branch poking out through a broken window on the second story.

The group walked slower as their neared the intimidating structure, eyes wondering about to take in as much as they could beyond the snow.

Their walk in the almost-knee high snow brought them around a large, simple fountain set in middle of the circular driveway. Each of the three tiers was filled up and piled over with snow. The vines that crawled up each basin disappeared underneath the snow. Garnet wondered how it looked when it worked, had the water shot high into the air, or was it more of a low, gentle flow? Either way, she knew Pearl and Steven would have loved to see it. She cast a sidelong glance at the pale woman following close behind Kevin, though not quite touching him. A small spot of red was visible on the bandage on her forehead.

Vines, shrubs, and other plants piled high with snow surrounded the house proper. They grew from thee valleys in the roof and covered whole sections of the outer walls. A larger porch wrapped around the front of the house, following the curve of the tower to their left. The once ornate ballisters were broken in most spots, and the railings and steps broken entirely in others.

Both the first and the second story had many windows, most cracked or shattered, some hidden behind the vegetation. A few gables sported gaping holes that suggested the third story had once been liveable as well. A bay window protruded front and center of the house, as well as another in a larger back section visible to their right.

Garnet let out a low whistle as they stopped at the stairs, gaaping at the impressive structure. She wondered how long it had stood empty, and how long it was lived in before it had been abandoned. Kevin scoffed and flipped his bangs back with one hand, setting the other on his hip.

"Mine is much bigger." He put extra emphasis on the third word. 

His voice broke the eerie spell that had settled over them, causing Steven and Amethyst to giggle. Pearl and Garnet exchanged glances before Garnet cleared her throat, squinting through the heavy snowfall.

"Alright, we have no idea how long this place has been empty. For all we know, there may be a few critters in the house, and weak floorboards, an-"

"Wouldn't it be safer to stay in the van? This place gives me the creeps." Kevin interrupted, crossing his arms and bouncing on the balls of his feet for warmth.

"If you want to freeze your ass off, go ahead." Jenny chipped in. "At least there will be some places in here that don't have a breeze, and it has chimneys, so we can start a fire."

Garnet shook her head.

"The chimney's will be blocked by now, we would suffocate from the smoke." She sighed and tentatively placed her foot on the steps, then retracted it. She turned back to the group. They were all shivering.

"I suggest we split up and search for the safest way, and get out of this damned cold. We can leave our bags here fr now, in a pile so we can see it under the snow, but I suggest we take anything that can be used as a weapon. Let's pair up in groups of two and start searhing." Garnet looked around.

"Steven and I will search the front." Jenny stepped forward. "It looks like it isn't too obstructed by plants, and Steven can't clear out anything with his arm hurt like that." Garnet nodded in approval.

"You and I can check the far side," Amethyst pointed to the right where the back extension was barely visible in the blizzard. "We can handle any critters we find!" Amethyst struck a fierce pose, a comical sight with her lavender mittens raised in front of herself. She seemed almost excited for the adventure.

Kevin glanced between Garnet and Amethyst, the strongest and the most fearless, respectively. Panic crossed his features.

"Wait, what if we run into something?! I can't fight off wolves by myself!"

"I'd be with you!" Pearl huffed as she brandished a detatchable leg from a camera tripod. Kevin sighed, rubbing his forehead in a dramatic gesture. Garnet stared at the heavy, ancient tripod leg and wondered how Pearl managed to fit the whole thing in her samll duffell.

"Babe, I can't have my girlfriend saving my ass, it's undignified!" Pearl gave him a look of deep disgust and tossed the heavy leg to Amethyst, who caught it with a flourish.

"Fine, have the short one defend your- your weak butt!" She turned away from her sputtering boyfriend to detach the other two legs to hand to Garnet and Jenny. Amethyst protested Pearl's jab at her height as Pearl went to stand next to Garnet, crossing her arms. Garnet coughed, covering her faint blush with her fist before straightening up. The tripod leg felt heavy and cold in her grasp. 

"Ooookay, shorty and scaredy will search around the big tower, Pearl and I will search the back." The rest of the group, minus a blushing Kevin and an angry Amethyst, giggled and shuffled as they stared at the house for a moment. The snow continued to swil around them before they began to move. Jenny and Steven moved towards the stairs, Jenny raising the makeshift club above her head. The rest of the group exchangedd wordless farewells before heading out in their seperate directions.

Garnet's face began to heat again as Pearl gripped her left bicep, pressing closer to her as they walked beyond the end of the porch to their right. The farside of the house surrounded by tall shrubs, the undergrowth and roots beneath the snow making their steps hazardous. Pearl stepped over the obstacles with grateful ease, pulling Garnet along behind her. They rounded the far building, trying to peer into the grimy windows as they passed.

The hairs on the back of Garnet's neck stood up as they passed a large, ornate bay window. She looked around, squinting to see through the snow. Pearl stopped and lookedaround as well, the only sound being the wind and the snow whistling around them.

"What is it?" Pearl whispered, holding onto Garnet's arm a little tighter. Garnet's eyes trailed over the windows, towards the roof and a structure that hung over the edge. An intense shiver wracked her body as cold, thick flakes found their way into her hood and down the back of her jacket.

"Nothing, I just thought...." Her voice trailed off as she felt an unseen pair of eyes on her and her companion. Her grip tightened on the tripod leg as she began to walk again. Their footsteps crunched as they rounded another corner, revealing another large extension at the back of the house. The outline of a door was visible in the corner between the two buildings, behind a twiggy sapling.

They exchanged a quick glance before Pearl gave Garnet's arm one last squeeze. Garnet gripped the tripod leg in both hands, her heart thundering in her ears as Pearl followed a step behind. They worked together to force the warped door open. Several long minutes passed, their breath leaving white clouds around their heads and freezing to their eyebrows and lashes. It finally creaked open, revealing a dark, narrow hallway and a faint, foul odor.

Pearl sighed and wrapped her arms around Garnet's waist, startling her. She glanced down at the thin woman, quirking an eyebrow over her glasses. Pearl gave her a timid smile and took a quick step back. Garnet already missed the brief moment of warmth from Pearl's hug. 

"Let's get this over with!" She took the tripod leg from Garnet before stepping in. Garnet froze for a moment, a dazed smile on her lips.

Brave Pearl always worked Garnet up. Not that she would admit it. She didn't need a repeat lesson. 

She just wished Kevin could appreciate what he had.

__________________

 

Steven followed a step begind Jenny. Their steps were slow as they crossed the rotten, failing floorboards on the porch. Jenny glanced sidelong at him in concern every time she heard a whisper or a hiss of pain. He smiled back each time, an attempt to reassure her, and gripped his arm closer to his chest. The initial ache had lessened, and he suspected the fracture was slight. The ache in his neck and back, however, worsened the longer they were exposed to the wind.

Between the two of them, they were unable to move the heavy oak front door. They, instead, snuck over to the windows along the left. Jenny used her sweater sleeves to wipe at the dirty glass. She started up the flishlight on her phone to peer in.

"Uhhhmmmm, maybe you should conserve your battery." Steven suggested, pulling out his own mobile device to power it down. Jenny let out a disappointed groan.

"All my hard work unsaved...." She mumbled as her phone turned off with a melodic chime. He laid his hand on her shoulder in sympathy.

They had more luck with the second door they found along the direction Amethyst and Kevin had taken. It took a moment for their eyes to adjust to the cool, darkened interior beyond. It appeared to be a   
small entryway, with another door ten feet in front of them. Snow had collected inside through a broken, small window pane on the door. It settled on the edges of a larrge hole on the floor, as well as the shelves lining the wall to their left. A few pairs of shrunken, petrified boots lay beneath the last shelf near the door. They were covered in fuzzy patches of mold.

"Do you think this technically falls within the range of 'a safe way in' that Garnet told us to find?" Jenny stage whispered to Steven. Steven made an exaggerated noise of consideration as he set one foot on the floor and leaned a little weight on it. The wood made an exaggerated groan right back. He pulled his foot back. 

"Weeellll..." He gestured to the hole in the floor. "I'll go first. I don't care if I do end iup falling in the basement, I just want to get out of this cold." Jenny nodded at him. They stared across the entryway.

"What do you think we'll find on the other side?" Jenny broke the silence. Steven turned to face her, a wide grin spreading across his face.

"Hidden treasures!" 

Jenny laughed at Steven's enthusiasm and ruffled the shorter boy's hair. Emboldened, she began to make her way in. They held on to the shelves for support as they crossed the short distance. Steven followed a little ways behind her, a spark of excitement forming in his belly.

"This is kind of like that time we broke through the police tape at that big pond an-" Jenny cut him off.

"Leeeet'ssss talk about that some other time, Steven..." 

Now was not the time to dwell on near-death experiences.

______________________

"We could just say we tried, and not." Kevin muttered as he trailed after Amethyst, holding her shoulder to steady herself. The shorter of the two sighed, having lost count of how many times she had done so. She wished she could have gone with Garnet. At least the stoic woman didn't speak more than she had to.

"Everyone else is probably in the house by now," she grunted, swinging the aluminum rod machete-style at some vines and undergrowth blocking their path. Kevin yelped at the sudden noise, then regained his composure.

Their path around the porch lead them to the base of the tallest tower. They didn't see the nearby carriage house through the snow until they were much closer. The structure appeared to have fared better than the main house, with more of its small, square windows intact than not. Amethyst made a mental note of it as she kept swinging at the vegetation in the small space between the two buildings. They had to climb up and cling to the porch railing to shimmy passed the worst of it. The wood groaned beneath their combined weight, threatening to give out. Kevin groaned along with it.

Amethyst huffed in annoyance as she swung through the last of the vines as they cleared the path. They reacheed the end of the tower and turned right, finding an extension to the house. Beyond the next corner they found a small, crumbling concrete porch. Amethyst made quick work of climbing the rubble to reach the door.

Mid-climb, Amethyst spotted a large dent in the aluminum rod in her hand and winced. The tripod itself had been a loaner from Lapis, and Amethyst knew Pearl would be pissed off at her rough housing with it. She pushed the thought aside and thrust her shoulder into the door, loosing her balance as it popped open with surprising ease. She turned back to see Kevin in the snow, hanging back wearily.

"Are you coming or not?" she asked. He stiffened.

"Do I look like I have a death wish?"

Amethyst sighed, blowing her long hair away from her eyes as she hauled herself in.

"Ok, have fun freezing." She waved over her shoulder as she disappeared through the door.

She had taken two steps into what appeared to be a kitchen before she heardKevin cursing and scrambling after her. She smiled at her cowardly friend.

_________________________

Dark eyes followed the intruders as they made their way into the kitchen. Sardonyx lowered her head to look at the two from under the red plume of her hat hanging in the edge of her vision.

They were an odd pair. The female, though Sardonyx was unsure of her age, carried herself and spoke like a young girl, though she had plenty more courage than her male companian.

Sardonyx smirked as the two argued, throwing about heated arm gestures and poses. Their large, puffy outer garments made strange, swishing sounds as they moved their arms about. Their sturdy shoes crunched over ages of debris and cracked flooring. Sardonyx breathed in heavily and leaned back against the far wall, watching their antics for a moment longer.

She flinched as the boy tripped over his shoes. He grabbed the stove next to him to steady himself. He sent two rusty wrought iron pans to the floor and collapsed the top assembly. He seemed ready to jump out of his own skin as the woman burst out laughing at his clumsiness. 

Sardonyx raised an eyebrow as the boy turned on his heel and strode to the countertop next to the stove. He wrenched open the door to one of the large lower cabinets and folded his entire body into the space. He attempted to shut the door behind himself, and upon failing, mumbled a request for assistance from his companion. A wicked grin spread across Sardonyx face as the young woman failed to turn her attention to him from across the room, peeking into the long abandoned, frankly disgusting pantry. 

Three swift steps forward brought Sardonyx within arm's reach of the cabinet door. She waited until the young man brought his arm back into the safety of the cabinet before she swung her hand out. The door slammed shut forcefully. A terrified, muffled yelp sounded from the interior as the young woman spun away from the pantry only to burst into laughter again a moment later.

Sardonyx surveyed the wreckage of her kitchen for a moment before nodding in satisfaction. She fixed her hat upon her head and rose through the ceiling to the floor above, eager to survey tthe rest of the intruders from a different vantage point.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please pardon a certain character's take on period-typical traditionally gendered roles....

**Author's Note:**

> Widows watches were actually more common on the coast, though some people are starting to build them again. They are basically a balcony on the roof, and fisherman's or navy soldiers wives would watch over the ocean from them.


End file.
